 |
|
|
| GENRE |
| Action-Racing |
| DEVELOPER |
| Sennari Interactive |
| PUBLISHER |
| Atari |
| NUMBER OF PLAYERS |
| 1 |
| CONNECTIVITY |
| No |
BUY NOW AT
|
Driver 2 Advance
When the original Driver was released for the PlayStation, it received a high amount of critical recognition and popular support for its intense, high octane racing gameplay. It was the first game to truly capture the feeling of being a getaway driver and point man in a seedy underground crime syndicate. A sequel would be released near the end of the PlayStation’s life cycle, but it was met with mixed reviews and left many hoping for a better third installment of the series. While fans await Driver 3, they now have a chance to experience Driver 2 in a brand new format on the small screen of the Game Boy Advance. Does Driver 2 Advance stay on the highway and recreate the exhilarating gameplay for which the series is reknowned, or does it skid into the ditch of mediocrity?
visuals
One look at this game and it is clear that this is going to be a rocky ride. The Game Boy Advance was not designed to render three-dimensional game engines, a fact that many publishers don’t want to admit. As a result, games utilizing a 3D engine tend to look awful on the GBA. Driver 2 does not look completely bad and is quite possibly the most effective use of 3D on the GBA. The game takes place entirely within the confines of a city, and the engine does a fine job rendering the buildings and architecture. Traffic in the game is well-done, with many cars on the screen at one time. The cars themselves have fairly basic designs, but it is easy to distinguish them from on another. This game actually does look like it is 3D, and it creates a unique sense of scale while being in the confines of a city.
Unfortunately, this is a 3D engine on the GBA, and the problems are readily apparent. Most obvious are the pedestrian models and the player character when outside a vehicle. There is not much life within the massive cities, and the few pedestrians that are about look awful, looking to be comprised of no more than five pixels. Limb and body movements are essentially non-existent. The ground textures are pathetic as well. Most of the streets in Driver 2 Advance are the same solid layer of gray. Finally, although the framerate in the game is consistent, it is far too slow for a game of this nature. The biggest selling point from a design perspective for the Driver series is its sense of speed, but this graphic engine is not capable of recreating that essential element of gameplay. This is a crucial flaw that nullifies any positive aspects the graphics may have.
audio
The audio in Driver 2 is also a mixed bag. The driving and crashing sounds are very well-done. The timing of the sounds are well-tuned to the action of the game. When a car crashes, it really sounds like a major crash should, loud and grating to the ears. If only the music were as competently done. The music in Driver 2 Advance is some of the absolute worst I have ever had the misfortune of listening to. It’s as if the music technician ripped a song from his favorite porno and converted it into an N.E.S.-level MIDI player. Thankfully, there is an option to turn off this debacle of nonsensical "bleeps" and "bloops."
gameplay
As mentioned above, the Driver series’ biggest draw is its sense of speed within the tight confines of city streets, which the GBA version’s engine isn’t able to recreate. This is unfortunate, because Driver 2 Advance is an otherwise great game. The control for running on foot is a little wonky, but it works well enough. Actually, the control schemes for running and driving are the same, but it is the control and "feel" of the driving that makes this game work. The hand braking and tight corners that made Driver and Driver 2 a joy to play are maintained in the GBA version, and they feel just right. Each car handles differently, and the physics are impressive for a GBA game. Driver 2 Advance doesn’t have the depth of driving moves of its more robust counterparts, but it retains all it really needs.
The driving control is great, but what makes Driver 2 so impressive is the number of modes it offers to the gamer, completely unlocked at the beginning. The main mode is "Undercover," which is the story mode. The actual story of the game is some incomprehensible nonsense about tattooed Brazilians and a no-good money man named "Pink Lenny," but the story of the game doesn’t really matter. Undercover mode is where the meat of the game’s lengthy series of missions. When you want to pick up and play, there are several modes available. First is "Take a Ride," which allows you to driver around freely in one of the two cities in the game. "Quick Chase" is a fun little game where you try to ram another car until it can’t drive, or keep up with it if you can’t incapacitate it. "Quick Getaway" is where you simply have to escape an onslaught of police officers. There are several more as well, each offering a unique challenge that help extend Driver 2 Advance’s replay value.
With all these great modes and fine control, it is disappointing that the core design simply does not work on the GBA. The game is simply too slow, and there is no sense of rush or exhilaration. The game can be fun, and some of the missions are exceptionally well-done, but hardware limitations make their presence felt. The team at Sennari Interactive was ambitious and went as far as they could recreating the great gameplay of the Driver series on the GBA. Yet ultimately, this game is on the GBA, a system not designed to handle 3D engines, and the overall experience of the game suffers because of it.
multiplayer
Driver 2 Advance offers four multiplayer modes which can support up to four players. I myself haven’t had the opportunity to test out the multiplayer of the game, but the modes appear to be unique and provide a different challenge from one another. One in particular allows players to race across one of the cities without a preset route, a unique twist more racing games should adopt. As in the single player game, the impressive number of modes in multiplayer make Driver 2 a complete package with great replayability.
overall
Driver 2 Advance is painfully inconsistent. It has great control, and myriad single-player and multiplayer modes. Unfortunately, it also has abysmal music and a spotty graphics engine that cannot achieve the sense of speed the Driver games need. It does so much right and tries so hard to be like its brothers on more powerful consoles, but it just isn’t capable. In the end, it is still a solid game worthy of a purchase. With any luck, we’ll see the next incarnation of the Driver series done completely right on the next generation of handheld consoles.
|
|
|
